The Minnesota RØKKR are hosting the first in-person Call of Duty Challengers event since the Los Angeles Open in March 2020.
The event, which will coincide with the second Major of the Call of Duty League season, will run from March 31 to April 3. Between the tournament’s prize pool, a chance to compete against CDL pros, and the opportunity to make a statement in the biggest Challengers event in two years, there is quite a lot at stake for the attending teams.
Here’s everything you need to know about the tournament, including prize pool breakdown, teams attending, and where to watch.
Teams
At the Challengers Open, 96 teams will be competing. This includes five European teams, three Asia/Pacific teams, one mixed Latin American team, and the rest of the bracket will be filled with North American teams.
North America will have almost every top team in attendance—from Toronto Ultra’s North American academy team to Havok’s Texas Nation team and the Stallions, ZooMaa’s Challenger team.
Europe will have its five best teams representing the region, including former CDL players JurNii, Lucky, and MeTTaLz, who will be representing RØKKR as their Challengers team. Toronto Ultra’s European Challengers team, consisting of London Royal Ravens substitute player Harry, Vortex, Beans, and Furious, will also be attending.
Three Australian-based teams are flying over to showcase their talent. Renegades, who have dominated the region for three seasons, will make an appearance and attempt to prove themselves against international competition. This event also marks the return of Mindfreak, which will likely be represented by Setz, Zepa, Crimzahh, and Nimble.
Combo, Traix, Sukry, and Anubah have formed a pick-up team and will play under D1 Gaming for the event, likely making them the only Latin American team. Sukry has won three Challenger Cups this season, while Traix has won one. Combo and Anubah also previously teamed for multiple Challenger Cups this year.
Here is a list of some of the most notable teams attending the Challengers Open.
North America
- Texas Nation: General, KiSMET, Havok, and Breszy
- UYU: Phantomz, Wrecks, Jintroid and Johnny
- 18 and Cracked: Welly, Classic, Assault, and Exceed
- 3Kingz: Zinx, Pentagrxm, Proto, and Brack
- Ultra Academy NA: Scrappy, Vikul, Hicksy, and Mohak
- Prestige Worldwide: Censor, Seany, Wand, and Ghosty
- Team WaR: Venom, Diamondcon, Royalty, and Prolute
- Furious Steal: Pandur, GodRx, Yeez, and Fame
- BearClaw Gaming: Xotic, Hamza, Noysii, and ChrisRadial
- Destroy The Odds: Mock, Hollow, Dak, and Mind
- Strike X: Hamza, Ramby, Fire, and Gunsiii
- Stallions: Kyzer, 2ReaL, Uli, and Cryptic
Europe
- RØKKR Academy: JurNii, Lucky, MeTTaLz, and ReeaL
- Ultra Academy EU: Harry, Vortex, Beans, Furious
- Team Sukry: Sukry, YaKo, EriKBooM, and Super
- Vengeance: Maple, Denza, Weeman, and Wardy
- The Originals: Grad, Rafi, Niall, and Shaun
Asia/Pacific
- Renegades: Louqa, Shockz, Fighta, and Jazhn
- Mindfreak: Setz, Zepa, Crimzahh, and Nimble
- PointBlank: Cronus, Immense, Lymax, and Restalling
Latin America
- D1 Gaming: Combo, Traix, Sukry, and Anubah
Format
The Challengers Open will feature a double-elimination bracket, which will have best-of-three series until reaching the round of 32, at which time the rest of the tournament will have best-of-five series.
Prize pool
The 96 teams will not only be competing for the lion’s share of the $75,000 prize pool, but the top four teams from this tournament will also be invited to the mid-season Pro-Am Classic in early May, where they will go head-to-head against all 12 CDL teams for $100,000.
Below is a breakdown of the prize pool.
| Placing | Prize money | Challengers Points |
| First | $24,000 | 25,000 |
| Second | $12,000 | 15,000 |
| Third | $7,500 | 11,000 |
| Fourth | $6,000 | 9,000 |
| Fifth-sixth | $3,750 | 8,000 |
| Seventh-eighth | $2,250 | 7,000 |
| Ninth-12th | $1,875 | 5,500 |
| 13th-16th | $1,500 | 4,500 |
| 17th-24th | $0 | 3,000 |
| 25th-32nd | $0 | 2,000 |
Stream
Challengers matches will likely be broadcasted on the official Call of Duty League Challengers YouTube channel, but that has yet to be confirmed.
